Pets, particularly cats, have a natural curiosity that is constantly being challenged and satisfied. Cats enjoy swatting at moving objects such as bundled feathers, plush stuffed mice and balls; such activity oftentimes being enhanced by catnip.
In providing a system for engaging a pet's natural curiosity, certain challenges inherently present themselves. For example, many of the toys, such as feather bundles and stuffed animals are easily degraded and virtually destroyed as a cat begins to take active interest in the toy, clawing, biting and pulling upon it for extended periods of time. Thus, in order to extend the life of a pet activity system, it would be advantageous for a pet owner to be able to remove a toy at any time from the system and replace it with a new one thus extending the life of the overall system, generally.
Pet products, such as pet furniture, are generally purchased by a consumer with little or no thought being given to expanding the product's potential. For example, a pet shelter or “condo” often consists of a rectangular or rounded outer shell having an opening and perhaps a carpeted floor to provide a safe and friendly haven for the pet. However, such a product, considered a “base” in the present invention, can be made much more interesting by expanding its potential well beyond that contemplated by others. For example, several such “condos” could be snap fit together while various attachments, such as lights, bells, feathered toys and the like, could be releasably appended to such furniture to again enhance and stimulate a pet's interest.
Another challenge facing pet owners in employing virtually any activity system is the recognition that many such systems can present a safety hazard, particularly if the pet engages in such activity without human supervision. For example, many such pet toys include an umbilical causing the toy to dangle or move when swatted, the umbilical being capable of entangling a pet and potentially asphyxiating it or at least causing limb injury.
It is thus an object of the present invention to provide a system in which a plurality of parts can be releasably joined to expand the use possibilities of such a system and stimulate pet interest in engaging with it.
It is further an object of the present invention to provide a pet activity system which does not present a safety hazard to a pet whether or not the pet activity systems is employed in the presence of the pet owner.
It is yet a further object of the present invention to provide a pet activity system which can be employed in a multitude of locations and environments and which can present a suitable toy for engaging a pet and which can be replaced once worn or degraded without having to replace the entire system.
These and further objects will be more readily apparent when considering the following disclosure and appended claims.